Using a pseudo-disk driver for indexing contents and metadata of block-level backup copies, including block-level backup copies of virtual machine data files

A data storage management system for using one or more pseudo-disk drivers to index backup copies of virtual machine data files, the system comprising:

• a computing device comprising one or more hardware processors;
• a media agent in communication with the computing device and comprising one or more hardware processors;
• a storage manager in communication with the computing device and with the media agent, and comprising one or more hardware processors;
• wherein the computing device is configured to:
• activate a pseudo-disk driver at the computing device that corresponds to a point in time associated with a plurality of block-level backup copies of virtual machine data files in a virtual machine disk at or before the point in time,
• wherein a storage operation managed by the storage manager generated the backup copies, which were stored by the media agent to a storage device;
• by the pseudo-disk driver, implement a pseudo-disk in cache memory at the computing device;
• by the pseudo-disk driver, cause the pseudo-disk to be mounted at the computing device as a data storage volume designated for the plurality of block-level backup copies;
• by the pseudo-disk driver, receive from a file manager application executing on the computing device first read requests for metadata in the plurality of block-level backup copies;
• by the pseudo-disk driver, if unable to serve one of the first read requests from the pseudo-disk, transmit a second read request to the media agent;
• wherein the media agent is configured to:
• identify based on the second read request metadata in the plurality of block-level copies that is current as of the point in time, and
• respond to the second read request by recalling the identified metadata from one or more of the plurality of block-level copies at the storage device without restoring the virtual machine data files in their entireties to the pseudo-disk at the computing device;
• and
• wherein the computing device is further configured to generate an index of the virtual machine data files in the virtual machine disk as of the point in time, wherein the index comprises filenames and file attributes in metadata stored in the pseudo-disk and obtained by the file manager application from the plurality of block-level copies using the pseudo-disk driver.